On Friday, February 25, I participated in a tour to Canyon View and Cottonwood elementary schools with 16 other community members. Superintendent, Dave Bond hosted the event with support from Lorraine Cooper and principals Mark Stephens and MaryAnn Kautzky.
At 8:15 the program opened at the district Administration Center with Bond describing characteristics of Kennewick School District. The district budget is approximately $143 million and serves just over 16,000 students. Free and reduced cost lunch is provided to 51% of students. This measure is an indicator of poverty and also correlates with student achievement in school. KSD has banked funds which will see the district through the state budget crisis until 2014.
For more details characterizing Kennewick School District I refer readers to our KSD elementary school report dated November 5, 2010:
http://ksdcitizens.org/2010/11/05/ksd-elementary-school-report/
Canyon View principal, Mark Stephens related improvements to the school since the renovation. A new gym was constructed next to the former gym which is now a cafeteria. Outdoor access directly into the gym enables public access to the gym after school and on weekends. A new stage viewable from the cafeteria doubles as the music room.
Small instructional rooms near the classrooms are used by teachers and paraprofessionals to work with groups of 3 to 5 students on reading and math skills. State funds provide the Learning Assistance Program (LAP) with a half time teacher and 3 paras. The building focus is on academics but students do have fun in music and PE. 59% of students receive free/reduced lunch.
Cottonwood principal, MaryAnn Kautzky said the new two story building also provides small group reading instructional areas in the hallways across from classrooms. The building is designed for energy efficiency. Staff includes a counselor and specialists for music, PE, library and reading. Sixteen paras include 7 for basic education, 6 for special education and 3 for overload classes.
We boarded the bus at 9:20 and made our first stop at Canyon View. The impressive front entry is an addition to the original structure creating more office space. A poster in the office declared “All students can learn and succeed, but not on the same day in the same way.” (William G. Spady).
The gym features a new climbing wall and students were readily able to hear the gym teacher give instruction because his voice was amplified through a speaker system. Five for Life is the research-based fitness and health program for students K-5 and is aligned with state standards. Students have two 30 minutes PE classes each week. Intramural activities are offered during lunch.
A reading intervention class offered in a small group instructional area was being taught by a reading specialist working with 5 students. Eight small groups are receiving instruction at the same time as regular reading classes. The benefit is not only for students in small groups but also in reduced class size reading classes. Reading Mastery is a phonics based program which is able to advance students 2 years growth in a school year. Reading to Learn engages students in science based activities.
Entering a classroom it was evident that students were participating in instruction. Observing the staff working with their students it’s clear education is important business.
A fifth grade choral group was preparing for participation in the upcoming, March 29, District Choral Festival. Students K-5 have one hour of music instruction per week. Chorus is offered to 4th and 5th grade students and Orchestra is available to 5th grade students..
Back on the bus we arrived at Cottonwood at 10:35. The design of this school is a radical departure from other district elementary schools. Inside the building there are open spaces where it is possible to see up to the roof which is three stories high. Large windows create a bright atmosphere indoors. Our group entered several classrooms to see teachers and students at work. Typically, student tables were clustered in groups of 4 with Math Connects and Imagine It textbooks stacked in the center. Teachers have access to microphones so students anywhere in the classroom can hear lessons through ceiling mounted speakers.
Cottonwood’s PE and music programs are similar to those at Canyon View with some exceptions. All students K-5 play marimbas as part of music class during two 30 minute periods each week and there is no 4th or 5th grade chorus. Orchestra is offered to 5th grade students. Students have recess during lunch and another 15 minutes from 1:45 to 2 PM four days each week.
A class was playing a word game in the library where about 6000 books are now available. The fifth grade chorus was practicing the same music program for the choral festival. In the office there was a wall with ID badges for the more than 300 volunteers who work throughout the school. Our final stop was the cafeteria which is an enormous space with the three story ceiling. Eight students described their experience at Cottonwood. Of eight girls, four said math is their favorite subject.
We returned to the Administration Center for lunch and a question and answer session. In response to a question about future construction, Bond noted the state provides matching funds for remodeling buildings after 25 years. Kennewick has scheduled remodels for buildings after about 30 years. In 2014, Kennewick will enter phase 2 of its construction plan with a new elementary school and remodeling of Desert Hills Middle School, Eastgate and Westgate. Kennewick is looking for 50 to 60 acres in the west part of town for a future high school.
Link to KSD 10 Year Facilities Plan:
Security is provided in the district high schools by Kennewick Police Department officers with offices in each building along with 2 plain clothes security officers. Middle schools have a single plain clothes security officer in each building. No additional security is in district elementary schools. Kautzky related that Cottonwood students are in a bright and cheery environment where they feel happy and proud to be in school.
Responding to a question about teacher evaluation, Bond said the Washington Administrative Code (WAC) regulates evaluation. There is a bill in the legislature to lay off the poorest performing teachers first when layoffs are necessary. A more fair, effective and accurate evaluation system is required to do this. Kennewick is piloting a revised evaluation system intended to accomplish the task and the state will adopt a new evaluation system for the 2013/14 school year.
Bond spoke well of the relationship between KSD and the Kennewick Education Association (KEA). He anticipates district teachers using the new evaluation system to direct their professional growth.
Answering a question about graduation rates, Bond stated students drop out of school when they fail classes. Kennewick does not want to raise the graduation rate by lowering standards but has hired Success Coordinators to work with at risk students. This method has been successful in other districts and is expected to work in Kennewick.
Bond affirms the district wants to meet the needs of all students and that some learn better out of the classroom. KSD provides a Virtual High School for 150 students to do coursework on line. Students meet with teachers once a week and staff can monitor student progress via computer.
Working with the Mid-Columbia Parent Partnership, KSD provides on line classes to home-schooled elementary students. This system can also serve students whose behavior is not acceptable in school. Students will not be permitted to disrupt the education of those who are at school to learn.
A final question about a staff dress code was more a statement that teachers should dress professionally. Bond was pleased to meet that standard.
Any evaluation that relies on student test scores as a measure of teacher performance should be avoided. The test scores themselves are not valid , even for the purpose for which they were written, and certainly not for evaluating the teacher. Using them for this purpose will further drive the narrowing of the curriculum to what is on the test at the expense of other 21st century skills and exacerbate the already rampant teaching to the test. Here is an interesting article that further outlines my objections:
Teachers and parents should step up to the plate and just say “NO” to using student test scores as a part of the evaluation of teachers. It is not in the best interest of children.
“All students can learn and succeed, but not on the same day in the same way.” (William G. Spady).
The Spady quote took me by surprise. My understanding of the current Kennewick curriculum at the elementary school level appears to support the exact opposite: All of the children on the same day in the same way. Am I wrong about this? Tell me what is really going on.
My first comment dropped the link I included. Here it is again: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/topic.php?uid=129808317079224&topic=31
When I entered the school building the poster with the Spady quote got my attention as the juxtaposition with district policy is stark.